Emre Can slams ‘arrogant’ referee after Borussia Dortmund’s Champions League elimination

Emre Can hit out at referee Danny Makkelie after Borussia Dortmund crashed out of the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday evening.

Borussia Dortmund were eliminated from the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, as Chelsea came from behind to secure a 2-1 win on aggregate. The second leg wasn’t without controversy though, as referee Danny Makkelie made a number of dubious calls that played a key role in Chelsea’s win.

Emre Can slammed the referee’s performance in the second leg and called him arrogant. In an interview with Amazon Prime Video after the game, the Borussia Dortmund midfielder said:

"“The referee was to blame. How can you give a second penalty in that situation? I just don’t understand it. I don’t care who ran in first. He hit the post – end of story. He was arrogant the entire game.”“Maybe he was afraid of the fans, I don’t know. If that’s the case, UEFA should have sent another referee. It hurts extremely that we got eliminated because of a referee.”"

Makkelie handed Chelsea a controversial penalty in the second half for Marius Wolf’s handball, even though the right-back hardly had any time to move his hand out of the way. The penalty was then retaken after Kai Havertz hit the post from his initial effort, because Chelsea players had encroached into the box.

The Dutch referee also took a lax approach with Chelsea’s blatant time wasting, which infuriated the Borussia Dortmund players time and time again.

Emre Can was not the only Borussia Dortmund player who was left frustrated with the refereeing. Jude Bellingham labeled the decision to retake the penalty ‘a joke.’ While Marius Wolf said that he did not understand why the penalty was given in the first place, as he felt that his arm was very close to his body.

Borussia Dortmund legend Matthias Sammer, who analysed the game for Amazon Prime Video, called the decision a scandal.